Preventing plagiarism is crucial when writing a thesis! Plagiarism is a form of fraud. If you forget a source, it is seen as ‘stealing’ someone else’s thinking and text. Preventing plagiarism is therefore very important. We explain to you in three steps how you can never commit plagiarism again.
Save the source
Using the source in the running text
Using a reference list
Additional tips for preventing plagiarism
Consultation
Save the source
When you start writing your thesis, it is useful to keep a file for yourself with all the sources in it. You should immediately save every article, web page, conversation or book as a source. This prevents you from forgetting what you based the text on and not being able to find a source anymore. It is important to ask yourself about any information you have based it on. This is an important step in preventing plagiarism.
Using the source in the running text
If you have a source that you want to include in your text, you should use a citation . You can do this, for example, by stating the last name and the year in parentheses after the text. In any case, make it clear that you have based the text on that source. Read over your written pieces several times and check yourself closely for information without sources.
Using a reference list
All sources you use should be included in the list of sources at the end of your thesis. Here you have different reference styles for noting it correctly. Is the APA style required by your education ? We wrote an earlier blog about this . All sources that you have used before can be found here. Please note that personal communication, for example, is not included here . You should process this in the text and/or attachment with the indication ‘personal communication’.
Additional tips and using Paraphrasing tool
Are you unsure whether you should use a source for a certain piece of text? When in doubt, it is better to name the source. You cannot use resources often enough. It strengthens the reliability of your thesis. When writing conclusions, it is strong if you can substantiate them on the basis of sources.
Write personal communication in the appendix as an interview. This is useful to have proof that you have made the communication, as it is not mentioned in the source list. You can read it somewhere by means of an interview.
It can always happen that you unintentionally commit plagiarism. Do you want to make sure that this is not the case? Then does the plagiarism check of scribbr, for example, where you know within 10 minutes where plagiarism has been committed in your piece. Prefer not to spend money? We found a free https://paraphrasingtool.site to perform paraphrasing online for you. When you hit paraphrase it will change the text in blue and that is the changed sentence which would eventually avoid plagiarism.
Consultation
We wish you every success in writing your thesis! Do you need extra help? You can ask the consultants that are available online to get you started with your work to provide you with proofreading services and paraphrasing services. The end result would be desirable to avoid plagiarism in your thesis.
